In the Land of the Tswana (Botswana) (page 4 of 10)

Hi Ludo,

I thought the waterbuck had stripes and spots on its coat. But the antelope was far away, so we couldn’t see well... Thanks Eric

...I was wrong—it’s not a waterbuck, nor a bushbuck, which has stripes and white spots as you mentioned. I’d rather suggest a Lechwe, Kobus leche. The range matches, as does the morphology (raised hindquarters). It could be a Sitatunga, but that one has white spots and stripes, which isn’t the case here. Never seen that eagle species! Can you identify it?

hi, this is indeed a lechwe. the sitatunga is very hard to spot because it's aquatic—it can submerge itself completely in the water, leaving only its nostrils above the surface, and it does have stripes.

if we're talking about the same thing, it's a bateleur

Hi Valérie,

Not exactly the same, indeed. Photo of the raptor in Ludo’s last batch of images, before the lazy lions.

hi unfortunately, I left my Southern Africa bird and animal guides with Paul, a Zimbabwean who wants to become a field guide in Hwange I admit that after so many years in Africa, I'm still just a beginner when it comes to birding still struggling with the really small birds and raptors, especially juveniles, and by the time you grab your book, the bird is gone and it’s not even in the guide—basically, not easy!

Yellow-billed kite?

Hi Valérie,

Yeah, I think it’s a Yellow-billed Kite, *Milvus aegyptius*. The color’s probably a bit light, but the beak fits the bill perfectly.

Yes, that's right, a Lechwe cob... I'd seen others before, but this one seemed "weird" to me! 😉

I still think a kite is more of a small bird... What a mistake! Thanks for the expertise.

hi are you a "bird watcher"?

I love observing all kinds of animals, but I must admit that birds aren’t necessarily what interest me the most.

Did you know that every year in Hwange there’s an animal and bird count that apparently needs volunteers—are you interested? Just thought I’d mention it!

On an upcoming trip to Southern Africa... why not. After South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana, the next country I should logically visit in the region would be Zimbabwe. But it’s not in my plans for now.

I’ve been following this fascinating travel journal with great interest since I’m heading there in May (by the way, it’s amazing what you managed to observe! 😮).

One question about the track you mentioned:

Then we reach the northern bank of the Khwai River, south of the track connecting Mababe to Khwai. And what a discovery! This marshy area is a true Noah’s Ark. Almost every animal species seems to have gathered here. The elephants, of course, which we watch playing and fully immersing themselves in the water.

Is this the one?:

Hi Erwan. Yes, that’s the right trail! You can access it from various points along the white track (transit road). It might be worth staying overnight at Magotho Camp (if you’re properly equipped).

Hi Ludo,

I’m jumping in late on your travel journal—so many (beautiful) pages to catch up on, how exciting!

Thanks for this lovely and generous share.

BL

PS: Awesome alias and avatar! !

No, I booked at Mbudi like you did. After reading your travel journal, I think we’ll follow this route—it’s really tempting—but of course, it’ll all depend on the conditions and water levels. 😉

Mbudi Camp is really nice. I was pretty disappointed by Dijara Camp.

It's true that we were there at the end of the dry season, worsened by a general drought affecting all of Southern Africa. So the animals were probably very concentrated here because other places lacked water. I’m jumping ahead a bit to my Savuti crossing. 😉

Overall during this trip, we saw a lot of animal species, including some of the most sought-after. We were definitely lucky, but by driving the reserve tracks for nearly 12 hours a day, we also increased our chances of spotting them. We didn’t get to enjoy the camps’ luxurious facilities much! 😏

Thanks Bernard for your kind words. I try to give back in my own way for everything I’ve taken from this forum. But as I’ve said before, I really should pick up the pace with my story—I feel like it’s dragging on too much myself.

30/09/2019 (Part 1): Khwai River

The day before was so incredible that we don’t regret at all having planned a second night in the area, even if staying at one of the Magotho Campsite spots, by the Khwai River, might have been a better location than Dijara. The banks of this river, between Khwai and Mababe, are truly worth visiting given the high concentration of wildlife. Many travelers, after spending two, three, or four days in Moremi, head straight to Savuti. In my opinion, they’re making a mistake! Once again, we set off first while our friends are still sleeping. The wildlife is just as abundant, with lots of elephants. Whether they come from the right or the left, they always have the right of way! 🙂 Wildebeest, zebras, and all kinds of antelopes are also plentiful.







Almost in the same spot where we left them yesterday, we find our lions again—the two groups are now reunited, making thirteen lions in a 100 m² area! Well, not quite, because there are lionesses, young lions, two cubs, but no adult male lions! I’d love an explanation from experts because since the start of the trip, the ratio of lions to lionesses has been heavily in favor of the lionesses. Why don’t we see as many male lions? Part of the group is literally lying in the middle of the track, blocking any vehicle from passing.



Simba, we recognized you!

Still, we never get tired of such a spectacle and observe the reunited pride 😉 for nearly two hours. Often lying down, they remain quite active.



No cavities, clean tongue, impeccable oral hygiene!

We’re being watched...







Some move to the riverbank and closely watch the antelopes, hippos, and elephants in the water, which they’d happily make a meal of. Others are cuddling. We love it!